From clicks to insights: Measuring library website usability with Google Analytics

Department/Unit

Libraries

Document Type

Article

Source Title

PAARL Research Journal

Volume

8

Issue

1

Publication Date

2022

Abstract

The goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and overall performance of the DLSU Libraries' website to inform content and design improvements and enhance user experience. This paper focuses on an understudied topic in academic libraries particularly in the Philippines and provides insights into the unique opportunities that a website analytics can offer in optimizing the effectiveness of a library website. The results of the study help identify issues that may be impacting website performance and are useful to make data­ driven decisions about website design, content, and user experience. This study employs user traffic analysis using Google Analytics, to examine various key performance indicators related to traffic sources, user behavior/activity,

and engagement. It compares website performance between 2019 (before COVID-19) and 2020 (during COVID-19) to gain insights into changes in user behavior, the website's effectiveness, and the impact of the pandemic on website traffic. Findings revealed that site visits significantly increased during pandemic and that referrals and social visits drive the most traffic to the library website. Most of the users go to the library website to access the resources.

Webpages dedicated to resources and collections gained the greatest number of visits. This study is confined only to the performance of the DLSU Libraries website using Google Analytics. Google Analytics only provides quantitative data and may not fully capture qualitative aspects of user experience.

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Disciplines

Computer Sciences | Library and Information Science

Keywords

Google Analytics; Web usage mining; Internet users—Statistics—Data processing

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